LittleBigPlanet 3 is the first console installment of the franchise without developer Media Molecule at the helm. Instead, development studio Sumo Digital takes the reins to bring Sackboy and a wide array of new playable characters to PlayStation 4 for the first time.

The new additional playable characters handle amazingly well. Each new character offers a unique mechanic to explore – Toggle can switch between small and big variations for some excellent puzzle solving moments, Swoop can carry items and swiftly glide around obstacles, and Oddsock provides a fast paced gameplay experience. Each character is adorable in their own right and each character brings a fresh approach to the world of LittleBigPlanet.

The excellence of these new characters makes me wonder why they are so underutilised. Each character has one designated level they are able to play once unlocked and small sections within hub locations, but most of the time players will take control of Sackboy. There is also no option to use these characters in Sackboy levels, since they usually include climbable materials that only he is able to utilise. In the end it was easy to forget I had unlocked these new characters, until they randomly appeared in Adventure Mode cut scenes.

LittleBigPlanet 3’s Adventure Mode introduces us to the new world of Bunkum, and the 1080p visuals of the PlayStation 4 make it look spectacular. Levels within Adventure Mode have an array of unique themes, ranging from a 50’s style diner to a vintage monster movie level. Bunkum was previously terrorised by three Titans, before the ancient heroes of Oddsock, Toggle, and Swoop were able to seal them away and save the day. Newton, originally introduced as a friendly character, uses Sackboy in order to release the Titans to steal creativity for himself. Newton’s intentions were pure at heart, but when the Titans take over his body, Sackboy is forced to unlock the ancient heroes and stop Newton in his tracks.

Sumo Digital has made an effort to emphasise story, which includes fully voiced cut scenes. The new focus on story works well and when compared to previous entries in the series, LittleBigPlanet 3 is easily the most memorable narrative. Newton himself is also a memorable villain thanks to the excellent voice work of Hugh Laurie and even Stephen Fry returns to provide his usual strange but witty rants. Though they are now fully voiced, most side characters are regrettably forgettable; Newton is the only character that stands out throughout the ten hour Adventure Mode.

LittleBigPlanet veterans will notice a drastic change to how missions are unlocked. Instead of simply finishing each level and finding hidden items to unlock mini-games, every mission is now located within hub world locations. This new mechanic brought back memories of Super Mario 64, with levels strewn throughout the hub that need to be discovered before they can be accessed from the planet view. Each hub world also contains Collectabells, these gold bells can be collected and taken to Zom Zom’s Shop in exchange for a variety of adorable outfits. Collecting these items is not essential, but the adorable outfits provide an extra incentive to hunt them down.

Adventure Mode itself offers the usual addictive collection of stickers and items throughout each level, but there were many problems when playing multiplayer. A lot of the Adventure Mode levels feel like they have been created around solo play and are not optimised for cooperative play.

For example, there are many levels that have horrible respawn locations. Whenever a character dies they will respawn as soon as a new respawn point appears on screen. The problem with this system is that there are over half a dozen levels with respawn locations too close together or even previous points in view when progressing forward. This meant there were many levels where we encountered respawn loops, which caused the camera to struggle to determine which character to follow, causing many a death. There were a few levels that we found impossible to complete cooperatively. Despite playing each LittleBigPlanet installment with friends, this was the first encounter with such issues. It really is a shame, because when LittleBigPlanet 3 works well and level design allows for flawless cooperative play, it can offer a tremendous amount of fun; it’s unfortunate that these moments are usually far apart.

LittleBigPlanet 3 also suffers because it relegates too many actions to the same button. R1 controls Sackboy’s climbing, ability to grab other players, and the ability to utilise any power-up that you have equipped. This created a great deal of frustration because there were many times where Sackboy would not climb because he was firing his equipped power-up, or where Swoop would not glide because the controls decided to grab onto another player. These missteps often resulted in death. With so many buttons on the DualShock 4, the decision to assign so many actions to one button left me bewildered.

Unfortunately there were also many technical glitches encountered throughout LittleBigPlanet 3. These included getting stuck inside pieces of the environment, falling through the map, random deaths, and many problems with the new Sackpocket tool. The Sackpocket was designed to allow each power-up to be easily accessed while exploring, but it frequently failed to respond when switching power-ups. Power-up would also randomly be unequipped when coop partners used them at the same time when in close proximity to one another. In addition to that, the tools themselves would also not respond if our characters were too close. For example, the new Hook Hat would not allow both characters to grind a rail at the same time if the two characters were too close together – instead dropping one to their death. These are weird issues that truly made cooperative play a struggle, which is disappointing when LittleBigPlanet has always revolved around cooperative play with friends.

Aside from the issues with the new tools, many of the new additions are great fun. Boost Boots add an entire new element to levels, Blink Ball is fun and interesting, and the new Velociporters include a new Portal-like aspect to puzzle solving as you try to juggle your momentum to make it too hard to reach locations. With such a unique assortment of new tools, it was frustrating that playing with a friend seemed to make the game less fun than playing alone.

LittleBigPlanet 3’s creation suite is bigger and better than ever. Not only does it include previous franchise features such as the ability to create levels with save points, quests and more, but it also introduces a range of new options. Players can now create levels using 16 layers to add further depth to their creations, though this may seem overwhelming switching layers is simple and smooth. Players can also create their own power-ups using the new Blaster Handle, as well as controllable weather effects and the ability to create trailers for your own levels. Sumo Digital has built on the already impressive amount of tools to bolster the overall package. Factor in that every level ever created in previous LittleBigPlanet titles is available in LittleBigPlanet 3 and you have over 9 million levels and the potential for even more impressive levels going forward.

Though all these new options may seem overwhelming, LittleBigPlanet 3 contains an insane amount of video tutorials that aim to help those wanting to create understand the aspects of creation mode. Getting the most out of creation mode will take time and dedication, but those who truly invest will have the ability to make some magical creations.

LittleBigPlanet 3 also introduces Popit Puzzle Academy to further help players get a grip on the basic fundamentals of creation. These levels are much slower than the platforming aspects of Adventure Mode, but they act as a strong learning tool. Completing these levels forced me to interact with the world, editing variables and working with the creation tool set in order to progress. This is an excellent way to teach those who may have assumed creation mode was over their head, while also producing a unique contrast to Adventure Mode.

LittleBigPlanet 3 is an ambitious installment in the franchise. It’s easy to see Sumo Digital understand the charming thematic of the series and have hoped to build on that with the inclusion of interesting characters, while also bolstering what was already an impressive creation tool set. However LittleBigPlanet 3 lacks the polish of previous entries in the series and cooperative gameplay feels like it wasn’t given the attention it deserves, with Adventure Mode causing many frustrations with other players.

LittleBigPlanet 3’s ambition is appreciated, but the lack of overall polish and problematic cooperative gameplay are not.

LittleBigPlanet 3 has appeared on JK Studios Ltd, stating they have handled in-game animation for the unannounced game.JK Studios Ltd is based in Sheffield and has previously worked on the Cross Controller Pack DLC for LittleBigPlanet 2, which allowed the player to interact with the PlayStation 3 game with their Vita.

The title is apparently coming to PlayStation 3 consoles, revealing Sumo Digital will be working on the rumoured title. Sumo Digital has previously been rumoured to be working on LittleBigPlanet 3, since Media Molecule has moved on from the popular franchise.

Before owning PlayStation 3 and loving my Xbox 360, I remember seeing all my friends playing this really unique looking cooperative multiplayer experience. It was so bright and colourful, but seemed to provide extremely challenging gameplay. That game was the original LittleBigPlanet, it was one of the first games I purchased for my beloved PlayStation 3 when I finally had one of my own and from that day, I was in love. LittleBigPlanet has been with me through the years, from the great first edition that leaves frustrating memories of that that electrified maze near the conclusion of the game, to the amazing moment of finishing LittleBigPlanet 2 and being greeted to my favourite song at the time “Sleepyhead” by Passion Pit. Sackboy and I have a loving relationship, and when I heard his enjoyable adventures were coming to Vita, I was ready to set forth into The Imagisphere once again.

LittleBigPlanet Vita is the first game to be without the development of Media Molecule, developed instead by a collaboration of 2 development studios. Double Eleven and Tarsier Studios, with LittleBigPlanet’s history of quality experiences, the studios had big shoes to step into. I am happy to inform that Sackboy’s latest adventure is as charming and enjoyable as ever, even Stephen Fry returns to bring his elegant voice to the handheld iteration and it wouldn’t be LittleBigPlanet without him. The dialog writers behind this game did a splendid job at providing some of the best humour the series has seen, from Fry’s quirky nonsense riddled banter, to the crazy characters throughout the campaign. The narrative behind LBPV follows an evil overlord known as The Puppeteer who feeds off of the happiness of others; it is up to Sackboy and his band of new friends to save the day. The narrative is out there as usual, but provides the charming nature that the franchise brings to the table.

The main narrative of LBPV is structured as previous games, there are 5 levels per world and each world ends with one of those levels being a boss fight. The boss fights have been done very well, with many incorporating touch features that the Vita is capable of producing, but they never feel forced. There are also hidden golden keys throughout most levels, if you have the skill to find them you can unlock side missions, some single player and some are competitive two player mini-games. These can actually be quite fun, playing air hockey against a friend was something I never thought I would see in the series, the latency of the touch mechanics does become apparent in these mini-games but it is still a fun side feature.

As stated previously Vita’s touch mechanics play a large part in the gameplay of LBPV, you can interact with the world like never before and it feels great. Sometimes there will be objects that need repositioning using the front touch, or objects that need to be pushed out for Sackboy to traverse the level using the back touch. The great thing is they are both extremely responsive and feel natural; touch mechanics should complement the gameplay and not feel like they are thrown in because they can be and these are the best ones I have dealt with in Vita’s short life. Though as with the mini-game latency issue, few levels require more precise touch controls and the latency does hurt these sections, but they are few and far between, never ruining the experience.

One of the greatest features of LBPV is the intelligent level design; almost every single level impressed me. The way they used touch mechanics, different devices Sackboy can use and variety in the construction of levels, really blew me away. I haven’t been this impressed since Rayman: Origins, I was enjoying the diversity of puzzle-platforming so much that the smile could barely be wiped from my face during my playthrough. The levels feel great on the Vita, being bite-sized like its console counterpart it makes a perfect experience for the handheld console. By completing each world the game has to offer you are rewarded with 5 separate Arcade Games, these showcase the levels players can create within LBPV’s Creation suite. These levels are cool side dishes to the main course, but there is nothing in-depth enough to keep you playing, but the option of extra content is appreciated.

LittleBigPlanet visual style fits extremely well on the Vita’s OLED screen, the colours are bright and vibrant and the unique visual style of certain levels really pop. It is frankly a gorgeous game, probably one of the best looking games on the handheld; the various level designs do a great job at showing off what the system can accomplish. Not only that, but the audio direction is the best in the series, the music in previous games has never stood up for me personally, it was never bad by any means but never caught my attention. LBPV corrects that by creating the best music in the franchise, these tunes were stuck in my head days after completion and they complemented the level design brilliantly. They were two peas in a pod providing a charming attitude that stays true to the series.

Now I personally am not the most creative person when it comes to game design, which is why I am here writing about games rather than making them myself. So I haven’t had the most experience with LittleBigPlanet’s Create Mode in the past, however it is easy to tell that this new iteration is far more accessible due to the touch functionality. Want to move an object to a certain place? Place finger and drag. Enlarge an object? Place two fingers and slowly extend out as you would on your smartphone these days. It is so simple, yet so functional that is comes off very well, I found myself still struggling to create levels due to less than creative mind. But the potential for the dedicated creative gamers out there, only improves with the Create Mode’s latest feature.

The creation suite now includes the Memoriser, what is this you ask? Well previously you have been able to create one level in your created experience, that is old news and the Memoriser is here to change that. It allows for created levels to be given a save feature, no longer are you held back to create one level and move on, you can create multi-tiered levels that include hours upon hours of content with player being able to save their game during their playthrough. This new ability could really open the flood gates for creative players to provide some really engaging games, yes games. You could create an RPG that goes for hundreds for hours, you could create anything you mind desires, giving players a reason to come back and continue their Sackboy’s adventure through gamers creativity.

The presentation of the online mode itself is very sleek; it feels more streamlined than previous encounters and makes finding levels easier in many ways. Searching for levels is very quick, with search results appearing in a heartbeat, yet the actual loading of the levels themselves is a different story. Some levels take upwards of 1-2 minutes to come back with an error message, while some seem to load fairly quickly, maybe it was due to the size of the levels? It is hard to tell, but it was a mixed bag and when the loading times were bad, they were very unkind. When I was playing online with other players, I noticed the game ran very smoothly, since my Vita is Wi-Fi connected I was very surprised to see the game run so well. The online features have been refined to provide gamers with the best content quickly and a (for the most part) very responsive online experience.

The Verdict

LittleBigPlanet Vita is that console experience we were looking for on the Vita, it provides a great entry in the series and my personal favourite. Media Molecule’s baby has been put in great hands and has been treated with the utmost respect, providing fans of the series with true charming Sackboy adventure. Touch controls never feel forced and complement the gameplay, latency may play a small issue, but it never takes away from the experience. Intelligent level designs will keep each adventure enjoyable and the gorgeous graphics will impress. Though online levels may have long load times, the creativity of gamers sings when you are introduced to some excellent created levels, and never costing you one extra cent.

My experiences with Sackboy in the past have been delightful and the Vita iteration of LittleBigPlanet does the entire series justice. Enjoying the charming world of LittleBigPlanet on-the-go, is one small step for this little Sackboy. There is no telling what other magical and creative journeys will grace our presence in the future, as the Imagisphere is full of unlimited possibilities.